Republic of China

Chapter 348 Rolling the Skin

Zhao Sanyuan suffered a lot from old men, especially those who set up stalls in front of the school. Qi Sihai was almost traumatized by him.

Although Zhao Sanyuan couldn't tell the true depth of the man selling sugarcane, he was definitely a ruthless character, and the icy murderous intent in his eyes could not be faked.

Judging from the situation, it doesn't seem to be aimed at me, but how deep is the water in a big city? It's better to be safe than sorry, I have to test this old man's bottom line.

"Uncle, are you taking a break?"

"Buy sugarcane and chop it yourself." The old man replied indifferently. His tone revealed a sense of old age and lack of enthusiasm for everything.

Zhao Sanyuan had a kind face, but he was fully prepared. One hand was holding the hilt of the knife behind his waist, and the other hand was secretly holding a talisman, ready to take action as soon as the situation went wrong.

"Hey, sir, you can't do business this way. I'm clumsy and I'm afraid I can't cut it properly."

"You ate a few gulps of my sugar cane and peeled it like carving. Are you clumsy? A clumsy person can't use a century-old knife to kill people. Just fart if you want to."

The old man was a little unfriendly, and judging from his accent, he must be from Tangshan Town.

Don't be fooled by his face covered with a hat as if he is indifferent to everything. In fact, he has a very sharp eye. He can tell from the way he peels sugarcane that Zhao Sanyuan is no ordinary person, and he can also tell that the sword behind his waist is an antique.

Zhao Sanyuan's attention was almost entirely focused on the old man's thick hands. He answered modestly, "I know a few knife techniques, but if I'm not mistaken, you are the expert, right? You've seen a lot of things, and now you're experiencing life?"

"Are there not enough experts in this world? How many of them are not bent on making a living? I am buried in the earth up to my throat, and I still care about my life. I will say a few more words to you because you are a good knifeman. If you have nothing to do, get out of here and don't disturb my peace."

"Okay, sir, please take a rest." Zhao Sanyuan stopped there, and temporarily confirmed that the old man had no hostility towards him. Even if he met him for no reason, it was none of his business. As for what kind of story or past he had, it had nothing to do with him. They could just go their separate ways.

You sell sugarcane and I chew sugarcane. There is nothing better than this.

But I also had some guesses in my mind.

Judging from the old man's reaction just now, it was either directed at Zhang Xiaogou or had something to do with the female college student named Xiaoya.
The old and the young lived in peace and no longer communicated with each other.

After Zhao Sanyuan had chewed several clumps of sugarcane, he saw Zhang Xiaogou walking back with a listless look on his face, like an eggplant hit by frost.

As expected.

Everyone knows that Xiaoya hates gangsters the most, but you still insist on standing out to show off your skills? You are showing off by tattooing a frog on a tadpole. It would be strange if you don't get scolded afterwards.

"Ugh"

With a long sigh, Zhang Xiaogou squatted back next to Zhao Sanyuan with an expression that sounded very hurt.

"With a knife?"

"It's not worth it to deal with a few low-class hooligans. Besides, I dare not show my knife in front of Xiaoya."

"At least you didn't stab her to death. Explain it to her when you get a chance. After all, you were helping her, so you had to act in an emergency."

"I used sugar cane peel."

Zhao Sanyuan was completely stunned. He thought Zhang Xiaogou could control the situation outside the advanced institution, but it turned out that he was slaughtered by you?

"I'm not saying anything bad about you, Gouzi, but you need to change your temper, or you'll suffer in the future."

Only Zhang Xiaogou doesn't understand Zhao Sanyuan, otherwise he would have spit sugarcane rinds on his face. What's wrong with your good temper? What are you talking about me?

"Just now I heard you say that you know the art of divination, right? Please help me check if there is any incompatibility between you and Xiaoya. Why are you always so hostile to me?"

"Okay, let me give you a few gulps of sugar cane as a fortune-telling fee. Let's talk about your horoscopes first."

"Uh, I don't know." Zhang Xiaogou just realized that he hadn't found out the time of his goddess' birthday. When he wanted to ask shamelessly, the main entrance of the university had already been closed. If he wanted to meet her again, he would have to wait until next weekend.

Zhao Sanyuan patted the residue on his hands and said, "You have plenty of opportunities to ask. Now it's time to do my business. Let's go."

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to give some benefits to you guys in the Haizi group. Maybe I can find out the real cause of the death of the second-in-command."

Zhang Xiaogou shuddered, "Brother, you can't make this up. Master Hai has said that whoever kills the murderer will be promoted to the head of the hall! He can open his own incense hall!"

"That's perfect. I'm giving you a chance to become rich, so why don't you lead the way? But in return, you have to help me find out something. It's not difficult. I just want to find some old things."

"Antiques, right?" Zhang Xiaogou patted his chest loudly. "No problem! I know all about antiques in Tianjin. Just tell me what you like and how old it is."

"About three thousand years?"

"How many!?"

The two of them walked further and further away, and from time to time they could hear each other startled.

The old man with the hatchet was still leaning on the rocking chair, his temples grayed by the evening breeze, and it seemed he had gone through so much hardship.

In a teahouse on the corner of West Street.

Tea drinkers ate fruits and sipped fragrant tea while enjoying the charming Beijing drum music.

In terms of life and entertainment, big cities have huge advantages. After dark in Tianjin, as long as you spend a little money, you can watch endless performances of all kinds of crosstalk, acrobatics, and so on.

Of course, listening to music in brothels and getting massages are not something that ordinary people can afford.

Sitting at a wide table in the corner of the teahouse, Mo Wenshan poured a cup of tea for Zhang Linyi, who took it with trembling hands, saying "I dare not, I dare not" repeatedly.

Living a long life has its benefits.

Back then, when Zhang Linyi was still a disciple, he had heard that a ruthless man who was rare in a century appeared in the world, but he suddenly flashed by like a comet, and there was no news of him since then.

Zhang Linyi would occasionally imagine how powerful that man was. With the inheritance of the Three Emperors plus the secret techniques of various sects, he was simply a walking treasure trove. His Three Emperors Sword alone was enough to rank among the Eight Supreme Beings, and to this day, no one could surpass him.

Unexpectedly, after several decades, that person actually poured tea for him. It would be strange if he could sit still.

"It's my fault that I didn't discipline my apprentice well. If there's anything wrong, as a master, I'll apologize first. Please don't take it to heart."

"Don't! What are you talking about, Brother Mo? In a martial arts match, the real thing is revealed in the hands. Your disciple didn't cheat. It's my inferior skills. How can you blame me?"

Mo Wenshan chuckled and shook his head. "How much knowledge does my little disciple have? He has never even seen the偃術, let alone know how powerful it is. If you are really determined, you can make him suffer a lot."

There are some things that can be hidden from mortal eyes but not from the eyes of a being with a keen eye.

Zhang Linyi looked a little embarrassed. "I'm just hiding my incompetence. For a person like me who has been in the market for a long time, being brave and aggressive will only make me die faster. A simple and ordinary life is the real life, don't you think so, brother Mo? No matter how sophisticated the Yan technique is, it can't compare to mechanical technology. It's better for me to be an honest fortune teller and earn some stable money. Besides, my little tricks are really nothing."

For thousands of years, the Yanshis have rarely been involved in the grudges and hatreds in the martial arts world, and other masters of the Xuanmen are unwilling to provoke them. In addition to the mysterious Yanshu, the Yanshis basically serve the royal family, the most important of which is to participate in the construction of the imperial mausoleum. Just say who dares to provoke them.

But things change and times have passed.

The achievements of the Industrial Revolution impacted all fields. In addition, the grass on the graves of Manqi people had been growing for nearly twenty years. Naturally, the Yanshi group, which was already sparsely populated, would accelerate its demise.

Mo Wenshan nodded slightly, "That makes sense. When I was young, I had the honor of making friends with your brother Che Baiqu. I still remember his extraordinary skills in Yanshu. It's not shameful to be inferior to him." Zhang Linyi smiled bitterly and said, "How dare I compare with him? Even his good grandson Che Lizi can't compare with me. In terms of talent and ability, this boy was born for Yanshu."

"Oh? I didn't expect that Yanshu would have a successor? Congratulations."

"Every family has its own problems. My nephew met a foreign girl from nowhere and insisted on going abroad with her to study science and technology, saying that it would help him improve his traditional Yanshu skills. This is ridiculous. My brother almost fainted because of this. Since Cherry went abroad, he has been in seclusion from time to time, saying that his grandson was unfilial after his son died, so he might as well create another obedient one. It's almost time for him to go home. I've been staying in Tianjin to make a living just to wait for him."

"Yes, every family has its own problems." Mo Wenshan slowly put down the tea bowl. Only you know how good your life is and the bitterness and joys in it. The glamour and splendor are always left to outsiders.

At this time, the stage was singing a new piece of music that had been arranged in the past two years, "Sacrifice to Qingwen", which was about Jia Baoyu's remembrance of the dead Qingwen and his complaint against the injustice of fate.

Perhaps the two old men were both thinking about their own things, and stopped talking, just listening to the emotionally rich lyrics.

"Brother Kang, should we continue to accompany him or what? We can't just leave Sanyuan there forever."

"Master asked us to accompany him, so we can't leave. Let's wait a little longer. Sanyuan shouldn't be in any danger, right?"

The more Kang Muang talked, the more unsure he felt. It wasn't that he was afraid that his younger brother would cause trouble, but he was afraid that trouble would cause his younger brother.

As the saying goes, there is no coincidence in the world, and destiny will come naturally. Zhao Sanyuan always finds himself at the center of one storm after another due to accidental circumstances, but this time, he took the initiative to get involved.

There is a saying in Tianjin: A pit of silver is a pit of ghosts, a pit of officials' hats is a pit of water.

It is said that there are big puddles in the four corners of Tianjin. The northeast corner is called the Silver Pit, where most of the residents are rich people, and there are many money houses, silver shops and gold shops.

In the southeast corner is Guanmaokeng, which was once the site of the Imperial Examination Hall.

The northwest corner is called the ghost pit, and the southwest corner is called a pit of water.

It is obvious that the east is rich and the west is poor, and the main reason is that there are many docks and developed trade in the east.

The principle of "live by the mountain, eat by the mountain; live by the water, eat by the water" also applies to underworld gangs.

The headquarters of the Shan head of the Anqing Gang is located in Zhuqu Lane, east of the northwest corner. It is said that this was once a temple funded by a senior official, but his entire family was soon executed, so the construction had to be shelved and gradually fell into disrepair. Later, it was bought by Liu Guanghai and rebuilt, and was called Beitai by the outside world.

Although it has the foundation of a temple, it is still a bandit's den.

After Zhao Sanyuan was carried over the threshold by Zhang Xiaogou, he felt unfriendly looks coming from all directions.

"Is Master Hai here today?"

"Brother Gou, you came back so late. We all thought you were caught in the act and in jail. Master Hai must not be here. He and Yuan Wenqiu were called to have tea by the police chief, Li Dasen. The friend behind you doesn't look familiar. Did he come from your hometown to seek refuge?"

"I guess so. Whether Master Kuai is here or not, there must be a backbone in the hall."

"Master Kuai is here, but he is busy dealing with the aftermath. The resettlement fee he needs to approve this time is too much, so he must go through it personally. If you really have something urgent to do, I will take you to see him."

"Big deal, lead the way."

Zhao Sanyuan was not sure what position Zhang Xiaogou held in the Haizitou group. He saw that the managers did not make things difficult for him. He wondered if it was because he was too good at fighting.

Beitai covers a large area. After walking around for a long time, we finally arrived at a relatively quiet courtyard. The lights in the study were on, and two muscular men with spears were standing at the door.

"Master Kuai, I have something to ask you." Zhang Xiaogou stood at the bottom of the stairs, bowed slightly and made the Dragon Tendon Hand.

no respond.

Zhang Xiaogou raised his voice slightly and continued to ask for a meeting.

Still no response.

Zhao Sanyuan lit up a cigarette and thought that there must be a lot of casualties in the war, and it would take some time to calculate the resettlement expenses. It was not a problem that he had no time to take care of the people below.

Only a slightly familiar aroma caught his attention. Zhao Sanyuan sniffed it and it was a bit similar to the smell of burning opium.

Don't ask, the answer is that a disaster almost happened in Fu Dachang. If Shangguan Baitu hadn't taken care of the aftermath, I'm afraid the people within a two-mile radius would have been shocked.

"Why don't you wait a moment? Your Master Kuai is so tired that he has to use opium to refresh himself. Don't be so tactful."

Unexpectedly, as soon as the words were spoken, the atmosphere outside the room suddenly became strange.

Zhang Xiaogou said in confusion, "Refresh yourself? Master Kuai's ancestors smoked opium in Humen, and he hates opium the most. How could he possibly touch it?"

"broken!"

Almost in unison.

Several people outside the room realized that the situation was not good.

Zhang Xiaogou was the fastest. He rushed forward and kicked the door open, with a dagger in his hand.

But the scene he saw was not something that could be dealt with by swordsmanship.

I saw a middle-aged man in a suit and tie with his toes pointed on the desk, his arms vertically upwards, and his body leaning forward forty to fifty degrees!
In addition, it seemed as if some force was rolling his skin, and the skin of his entire upper body, especially his head, was wrinkled into an extremely strange state!
Such a horrifying scene made Zhang Xiaogou and others stunned for a moment, but saving people was the most important thing, so they all rushed forward to help the people down first.

"Don't touch him!"

A loud shout.

Zhao Sanyuan made a hand gesture with his left hand, picked up the old scale pole with his right hand, picked up the lamppost beside him, soaked it in lamp oil, and threw it at Mr. Kuai's forehead.

An even more bizarre situation appeared in front of Zhang Xiaogou and others. They saw that Kuai Ye's wrinkled head suddenly became skin and bones, and the accumulated skin avoided the lamp oil and gathered at his chest.

This scene made everyone's scalp tingle.

Is this a fucking ghost?
When Zhao Sanyuan saw that his attempts to throw the lamp oil missed the target, he immediately changed his tactics and pulled out the colorful thread he carried with him and wrapped it around Kuai Ye's wrists.

"Disciple bows to the God of Viewing!"

"All things pay homage to the Fire that shines upon the Heavenly Gate!"

"The mighty and magnificent Black Jade Fighter!"

"Demons and ghosts turned into dust!"

"The divine soldiers are as urgent as the law!"

The sword finger swept across one end of the colorful thread, and the bright fire ignited and burned along the colorful thread towards Master Kuai.

Unexpectedly, Mr. Kuai's skin rolled like waves, and his whole body shook violently, which actually shook off Ye Huo.

Zhao Sanyuan pulled out a three-foot-long red cloth and sneered, "You're pretty crazy, aren't you? You didn't run away when you saw me? Fine, then don't leave!"

(End of this chapter)